Cyprus Property Lawyers for Buyers and Sellers

Every stage of a Cyprus property transaction

Kleanthous & Platis is a law firm in Nicosia advising Cypriot and international clients on every stage of a property transaction: due diligence, contracts, deposit at the Land Registry, completion and transfer. We act for buyers, sellers, developers and investors across Cyprus.

Start with a case assessment

Send us the property details before you pay a reservation fee or place a bid, and we will tell you what checks are needed. Contact Klitos Platis at klitos@kleanthousplatis.com.

The work

What our property lawyers do

We conduct full due diligence before you commit: a Land Registry search revealing the seller's title, mortgages, memos, prohibitions and notes of unauthorised works; verification of building and planning permits; and a review of the developer's position for new builds.

We draft and negotiate reservation agreements and contracts of sale, deposit your contract with the Department of Lands and Surveys to secure specific performance protection, and complete the transfer of the title deed into your name. Where a property has no separate title deed, including auction purchases and assignments of contractual rights, we structure the acquisition to protect you.

For a fixed-fee check before you commit, see Property Due Diligence.

The clients

Who we act for

International buyers purchasing holiday homes and investments, including remote purchases completed by power of attorney; EU nationals, who need no permit to buy in Cyprus; non-EU nationals, for whom we obtain the required Council of Ministers permit; sellers who need clean, enforceable contracts and a smooth transfer; buyers of resale houses and apartments, where what stands on the plot and what was permitted have to be reconciled before signature; and buyers at online property auctions, where the legal pack must be reviewed before bidding.

Whose side we are on

Independent of the seller, the developer and the agent

Choosing who advises you is the first decision of the purchase, and it is usually made for the buyer by somebody else. The seller already has an advocate. So does the developer. The agent will have one to suggest. A buyer who accepts the suggestion has not chosen counsel so much as inherited the counsel of the other side of the table.

Our position is fixed. We are instructed by one party to a sale, never by both. We receive nothing from an agent, a developer or a seller for the work, so no part of our fee depends on the sale going through, and no part of our advice is shaped by what would be convenient for the rest of the chain. Where the searches produce a reason not to buy, we say so plainly, and we say it before the money moves.

A recommendation from an agent is not in itself a warning sign. It is a reason to ask one question, and to have it answered in writing before anything is signed: whose interests does that advocate represent?

The reason

Why Kleanthous & Platis

Our practice combines real estate with construction law, so we see problems other reviews miss: unauthorised works blocking title deeds, defects in new builds, developer insolvency risk and common expenses disputes. We give you a clear written opinion before you sign anything, and we answer within one business day.

Fees

A fixed fee, quoted before we start

Conveyancing fees in Cyprus are modest relative to the amounts at stake. We quote a fixed fee for standard purchases and sales before we start, so there are no surprises.

How a typical purchase runs

From reservation to transfer, in one sequence

A typical purchase from abroad runs like this. The buyer sends us the property details and the reservation form before signing anything, and we review the reservation so that the deposit is protected rather than committed. We then carry out the legal searches: title, encumbrances, planning status and, where the property is under development, the developer's permits. Only when the searches are clean do we settle the contract of sale, and we deposit it at the Land Registry so that the buyer's rights rank ahead of any later dealing with the property.

Where the buyer cannot travel, the whole sequence is completed under a power of attorney, prepared and certified so that it is accepted by the Cyprus authorities. The buyer's presence is needed at no stage. At completion we attend the transfer, and the fixed completion fee has been agreed before the matter was taken on, so the cost was known from the start.

Common questions

How much are property transfer fees in Cyprus?

Transfer fees charged by the Department of Lands and Surveys are tiered on the assessed market value of the property: 3% on the first €85,000, 5% on the next €85,000 (from €85,001 to €170,000), and 8% above €170,000. A 50% reduction applies to resale (non-VAT) transactions, giving effective rates of 1.5%, 2.5% and 4%. No transfer fees apply where VAT was already paid on the purchase, which is typically the case for new-build property bought VAT-inclusive.

Do I have to pay stamp duty when buying property in Cyprus?

Stamp duty has been abolished for contracts of sale signed from 1 January 2026 onward. If your contract was signed on or before 31 December 2025, it remains subject to the previous rates of 0.15% on the value between €5,001 and €170,000 and 0.20% above that, capped at €20,000. Check the date your contract was, or will be, signed to know which rule applies to you.

What does depositing my contract of sale with the Land Registry actually protect?

Depositing the contract of sale with the Department of Lands and Surveys secures your right to specific performance, meaning you can later enforce the transfer of the property into your name even if the seller or developer tries to sell it to someone else, takes out a further mortgage, or runs into financial difficulty. This step is particularly important where the property does not yet have a separate title deed.

How long do I have to bring a claim if something goes wrong after I complete my purchase?

Under the Limitation of Actions Law, the general limitation period for contract claims in Cyprus is 6 years from when the issue arose. Certain exceptions can affect these dates, so it is worth having your specific circumstances checked rather than assuming a deadline.

What documents and searches does a property lawyer carry out before I sign?

Typical steps include a title search at the Department of Lands and Surveys to confirm ownership and check for mortgages or charges, confirmation that the property matches its planning and building permits, a check on whether a separate title deed has been issued, and, for off-plan or developer purchases, a review of the developer's own title and financing position.

Guides by country

Buying from the United Kingdom: what changed after Brexit Buying from Germany: what is different from a purchase at home Buying from the Netherlands: the purchase, and the development it sits in Buying from Poland: what EU status does and does not cover Buying from Lithuania: a complete guide

Buying without travelling? See buying remotely by power of attorney and what our due diligence covers.

Who leads this work

Between them the partners bring more than 40 years of practice in Cyprus. Every matter is run by one of them.

Andreas Kleanthous

Partner

Litigation, personal injury and insurance claims, debt recovery, administrative law, real estate, wills and probate.

Klitos Platis

Partner

Litigation, corporate and commercial matters, property and construction, including pleadings, interim applications and trial preparation.

Written on this subject

Cyprus Title Deeds: What the Register Records

Property

Specific Performance in Cyprus

Property

All our writing is on the writing index. Related: Litigation & Debt Recovery and Private Client.

Before instructing, send us the draft contract, the title reference and any search certificate already obtained, the plans and permits, and any reservation agreement signed, with a note of who the seller is and of any payment already made. Kleanthous & Platis LLC, Nicosia. Telephone +357 22 680 330, office@kleanthousplatis.com or klitos@kleanthousplatis.com.

Request a consultation

Tell us briefly how we may assist

A few sentences is enough: which property, what stage the transaction has reached, and any date that matters. We reply within one business day. Please do not send confidential documents until we confirm we can act.

For standard property transactions we give a fixed completion fee before taking the matter on, so the cost is known in advance.

Request a consultation

Or write to us directly at office@kleanthousplatis.com, or call +357 22 680 330.